


Beauty and The Maze.

by Femnewtmas



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: M/M, alby is a clock, chuck just doesnt give a fuck, gay as fuck, minho is a candle, newt is the crank, tommy is the belle of the ball
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-02
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-04-29 12:14:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 12
Words: 12,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5127221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Femnewtmas/pseuds/Femnewtmas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The best fanfiction you will ever read.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue.

“You can’t do this to me!” The boy screamed, tears slowly starting to form in his eyes as he repeatedly shook his head, “What did I ever do to you?”  
The woman chucked, a small smirk playing on her lips, “Oh darling, you have done more than you think.”  
“Please! Don’t do this!” The boy cried, desperation clinging onto his thin features.  
“But this is what you deserve for what you have done to me!” The woman screamed.  
“I’m sorry! I’m really sorry!” The boy said as his last hope.  
“It’s too late for sorry, my dear,” She laughed once more. With that, she walked closer to the boy, destined to ruin his life. The boy’s silent sobs being the only noise in the night.

\------Present Day.------  
Thomas hummed to himself, slowly walking down the dirt road to the quiet town only a few feet away from his dusty, ordinary looking house. He looked around slowly, a smile tugging at his lips when he heard the town suddenly burst to life. The boy skipped around the village, making his first stop the library, just like the day before, and the day before that, and so on.  
“Oh hello, Thomas,” The librarian greeted.  
“Hello! Have you gotten anything new yet?” Thomas asked politely.  
The older man chuckled lightly, pushing his glasses farther up the bridge of his bony nose, “Not since yesterday, boy.”  
“Well, that’s alright! Can I borrow this one?” He asked, sliding out an old, worn looking book from one of the shelves.  
“But you’ve read it twice!” The librarian exclaimed softly, laughing once again.  
“It’s my favorite book! A maze filled with people, how peculiar!” Thomas exclaimed, tracing his fingers over the book’s cover while staring at it lovingly.  
“Well, if you like it all that much, it’s yours!” The librarian said with a smile.  
Thomas’s eyes widened in surprise,  
“B-But sir-”  
“I insist!” The old man declared as he stared at the title. “We do have a few more copies of ‘The Labyrinth Explorers’ anyways!”  
“Well thank you, thank you very much!” Thomas practically sang as he held the book to his chest and walked out of the shop.  
“Wow! You didn’t even miss a shot, Gally! You’re the greatest hunter in the whole world!” Teresa boasted, smiling and lightly picking up one of the birds that Gally had just shot.  
“I know.” Gally mumbled, rolling his eyes at the girl.  
“Nobody alive stands a chance against you!” Teresa giggled softly, twirling a strand of hair around her nimble finger.  
“And no guy for that matter!” Gally declared, smirking when he noticed a certain boy making his way across the streets with an open book. “I’ve got my sights set on that one!”  
“Thomas Green? With the silly little brother?” Teresa asked, her mouth agape.  
Gally nodded proudly while he stared at the boy. He started to follow him around the town, finally catching up to him when he was almost out of the village.  
“Hey, Greenie.” Gally said with a wide grin on his lips, snatching the book from Thomas’s grasp.  
Thomas’s small smile turned into a frown as he scowled and tried to grab the book back, “Give it here!”  
“How do you even read this? There are no pictures!” Gally mumbled, turning the book upside down to see if that would help.  
After a few moments, Thomas managed to swipe the book back and sighed, shaking his head. “What was that for?”  
“My girl had her eyes on you. But, what’s there to see? Besides me of course. I mean, you’re nothing special,” Gally said, as though he made the smoothest remark ever.  
Thomas frowned, unsure of what to say so he just shrugged. How obnoxious of Gally, he was only ever boasting about himself. Thomas thought as he held his book tighter. Turning on his heel, he continued down the road.  
“Tommy!” An innocent voice called, which immediately put a gentle smile on Thomas’s face. Thank God, it was Chuck.  
“Hey.” Thomas greeted his younger brother with a playful ruffle of his hair, “How are you?”  
“I’m good! A few other kids invited me to play in the woods with them later! Don’t worry! Ben said that he would be there to watch!”  
Thomas bit his lip, feeling nervous about allowing his brother to play in the woods so late. But after a bit of begging from Chuck, he slowly gave in.  
“Alright, Chuck. You can go. But be back by sunset, okay?”  
“Yes, sir!” Chuck agreed happily, smiling widely before he took off from the small cottage and into the woods to find his friends.


	2. Chuck gets lost. Goddammit Chuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 7 Kudos and 2 Comments already holy shit, thank you guys! :D We should update at least once a week if not more...? But since everybody was hella enthusiastic about this and it hasn't even been a day yet, we decided to upload again! As a side note, this whole thing is based off of the movie, "Beauty and the Beast" (#sorrynotsorry) just in case you didn't understand the reference. This chapter's kinda short, but the next few should be a bit longer!

Chuck looked around the woods, frowning as he felt a shiver crawl up his spine. He had gotten himself horribly lost, and couldn’t find any of his friends. The worst part was, it was starting to get dark! Thomas would be absolutely furious with him! Frantically, he began to try to call out to somebody, anybody.  
“Hello?! Is anybody there?! Please! Help me!” He screamed hopeless. As if his prayers had been answered, Chuck noticed somebody running towards him.  
“Chuck?!” The boy called, smiling as he jumped into the clearing.  
“Ben!” The little boy exclaimed, running to the older boys side in joy. “I was so scared! I need to get home as soon as possible! Thomas is going to be furious!”  
Ben nodded and smiled at Chuck. But he slowly stopped, straightening his posture when he noticed a pair of eyes staring at them from the bushes. His eyes widened as a wolf began walking towards them, a few others following. Breath hitching in his throat, Ben began to back away from the oblivious Chuck.  
“What’s wron-” Chuck started to ask.  
At that moment, the bigger boy completely took off, fleeing from the scene and leaving the poor boy completely helpless.  
Chuck looked around, uncertain about what had scared his friend enough to run when he suddenly noticed the hungry wolf staring right at him, fangs bared.  
Left with no other choices and not a lot of time, Chuck made the split second decision to make a run for it. He stumbled through the woods blindly, getting snapped at by twigs and tripped by fallen branches. But, he didn’t stop. Not until he had reached a rather old, dusty looking mansion. Usually the young boy had very good manners, but due to his situation, intruding on this person’s property was the only way to guarantee his survival. He threw open the large, metal gate and quickly slammed it behind him, falling onto the ground as he panted.  
“That...was close,” He muttered to himself between breaths.  
Turning up to look at the huge mansion, he wondered if anybody lived there and if they would be willing to let him stay. So, Chuck took a few deep breaths to calm himself and trudged towards the house, not noticing as his hat fell off. He noticed the cracked cobblestone features of the old mansion, realizing that it once was a work of art. The stained glass windows faded to pastel colors, their shapes barely distinguishable. For some reason, however, Chuck was not very scared. The mansion, as creepy and dark as it may have seemed, did not look scary to the boy at all. Instead, he hurried up the stairs, hoping that he could get warmth inside from the brisk night. With this thought, he lifted up his hand to knock with the brass handles on the big, wooden doors.  
“Here goes nothing,” the boy said to himself as he proceeded to knock.


	3. Meet the Crank!

Thomas dashed around the small, crowded house, pushing past a few chairs to find his coat. They squeaked slightly, legs dragging against the wooden floor. It was almost an hour past sunset, he had given Chuck some extra time in case he had trouble getting himself back home. But now, Thomas was frightened. It shouldn't take Chuck so long to get back home! Thomas grabbed a candle while he struggled to get his coat on. Once he was out of the house, he realized he had no idea of where his little brother could have gone. Thomas looked in all directions, not sure which way to go, when suddenly he heard twigs snapping. That could be Chuck! Thomas thought, a smile creeping up on his face, It has to be!  
“Thomas!” Said the voice of a boy, too deep to be Chuck’s.  
“Ben? Where’s Chuck?!” Thomas asked, his tone rising.  
“We...there were...I was so scared…” Ben started to say.  
“Spit it out! Where is my brother?!” Thomas yelled.  
“There were wolves! I ran, I’m sorry!” Ben said, his bottom lip quivering. Anger swelled in Thomas. He walked closer to Ben and grabbed the front of the boy’s shirt.  
“You tell me where he is right now!” Thomas screamed and Ben’s face turned paler.  
“I-I...I don’t know. Please don’t hurt me!” Thomas let go of the boy’s shirt. He ran deeper into the village, back to his house. Thomas looked in the direction where Ben came from and figured it was as great a place as any to start looking. So, he pointed his flashlight into the dark woods and started jogging.  
* * *  
The night was seemingly getting darker, if it were even possible. But Thomas had to keep looking, Chuck was his only family left. As if Thomas’s prayers had been answered, he saw a large mansion in the distance. If Chuck had seen this, this is where he would go! Thomas thought as he walked towards the mansion. He opened the creaky gate and noticed a hat on the stone stairs leading up to the entrance. This is Chuck’s hat! He has to be here! Thomas quickened his pace. He wasn't sure how, but he was going to find his little brother. He looked at the wooden door, noting that it was ajar. So he pushed it open a bit more to fit through. When he slipped inside he closed the door behind him, creating a loud bang that echoed through the cobweb-filled parlor. That was a stupid move, Thomas thought, Now everyone knows i’m here, If there even is anybody here… When his bad move didn't trigger any reaction from the depths of the castle, Thomas assumed that it must be vacant. Of course, besides the possibility of Chuck being there.  
“Hello?” He called out quietly, bringing his candle higher up to illuminate his face through the darkness.  
No response.  
Yet, Thomas was persistent. He decided to try once again, “Hello? Is anybody here?” The boy called, his voice gradually getting louder with each and every word.  
Silence.  
The eldest of the Green’s still didn't give up just yet, slowly walking around the castle and admiring its enchanting beauty. Even though it was old, it was still beautiful. Just like a work of art that had never been completed.  
“Who’s that?”  
“Good question.”  
“Maybe he is the one to break the spell!”  
Thomas whirled around, a deep frown on his face when he thought that he had heard a voice.  
“Hello?!” He asked again, his voice more aggravated this time as he looked around for the culprit. Thomas shook his head a bit. I’m just imagining things... He thought. The boy started to pick up his pace, he wanted more than anything to find Chuck and then get out of there. He stumbled across an empty room with a prison cell. There was someone inside but he couldn't make out who it was.  
“Hello?” Thomas said warily.  
“Thomas!” The figure said as they turned around, revealing who they are.  
“Chuck! There you are! How the shuck did you get in there?” Thomas said.  
“Something found me and locked me up here after I came inside! Ben left me to the wolves!” Chuck said, realizing how loyal he thought his friend actually was and starting to pout.  
“And he paid alright,” Thomas chuckled, remembering how he’d scared the boy. Chuck was about to start speaking when his face turned paler than usual. The taller of the two frowned, obliviously.  
“Chuck? What’s wrong?” He asked and turned around, his own face soon matching his brothers. Thomas looked up and saw someone that he had never seen before. He suddenly realized whose castle he was in. Thomas was looking in the eyes of the Crank. He had only heard rumors about him, and he never believed them until he was face to face with him.  
“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” The boy asked, raising an eyebrow.  
Thomas stared at the boy, watching him intently as he was hit with a sudden memory. He remembered one day somebody from the town had gotten lost, then come back a few hours later only to spread rumors about some boy locked away in a mansion. Thomas later heard that they started to call the boy, The Crank. He never really knew why, he hadn’t even believed them in the first place so who cared about what they called him? This had been two years ago, so he had forgotten all about it. It was just an old tall tale, right? This isn't real, this isn't happening right now. The boy had suddenly interrupted his thoughts.  
“You okay? You look petrified…” He had said.  
“Why is my brother in a prison cell?” Thomas said flat out.  
“You shouldn't be here. No one should be here besides me,” The boy continued, as though it were obvious.  
“Why not? You still didn't answer my question!” Thomas exclaimed, getting angry.  
“It’s not safe to be here,” The boy mumbled, “But he trespassed on my property.” His face grew dark.  
“So, what do you want?” Thomas asked. The boy looked at him and responded bluntly,  
“You have to pick which one of you stays and which one of you goes.” Thomas knew his choice in a split second.  
“Chuck, you know how to get back home, right?” Thomas turned to his brother, who slightly shook his head. “How will I know he made it back safe?” Thomas then asked, directing his attention back to the Crank.  
“I will get someone to escort him by horse,” The boy responded. He then unlocked the cage and let the boy out, but shuffled Thomas inside.  
“Chuck, listen to me,” Thomas said to his little brother, “You go home, take this key to get inside the house, and don’t open the door for anyone but me, do you understand?” Chuck shook his head, tears forming in his eyes.  
“I’ll see you later, right?” Chuck asked, his voice shaking.  
“Of course!” Thomas said, trying to keep his spirits high. With that, the Crank told the boy to follow him out of sight to be escorted home. Thomas could only hope.


	4. Thomas can't listen to rules. Wow, Thomas. Wow.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Don't even listen to what I say about updates anymore that plan is out the window. Enjoy!

“This is your new home,” The woman said, turning to the boy, an angry look stretched across his face.  
“Well then get out! If it’s my house I never want to see you in here,” The boy said.  
“Oh! That reminds me! Good luck getting out of here,” The women said, a smirk growing on her face.  
“What do you mean?” The boy said, showing concern instead of hate.  
“This house changes at night. The only safety you will find is in your bedroom,” The woman said, as if it were obvious.  
“Where will I get supplies? How will I live?” The boy asked, very confused.  
“I will deliver your supplies once a week in that box over there,” The women said, pointing to a hole in the wall with a pulley system based metal box inside.  
The boy took a deep breath, trying to process all of this. He had been turned into a monster, stripped of his freedom, and left all alone in one day.  
“Will I ever get out?” He whimpered, no longer sounding angry, just completely defeated.  
“One day, a boy will arrive to this castle and it is only he who can break the spell. If he can learn to love someone like you, and if you love him in return, you are free.” The woman said with a sinister grin.  
“Who?”

Present Day.  


The Crank showed Thomas to his new room silently, the air full of tension as the two walked around the castle together. Thomas just assumed that this boy lived all alone, which was strange. He looked to be in good health, rather handsome, and quiet. No particular reason for him to be alone stuck out. What had happened to leave him by himself? His thoughts were suddenly stopped when the Shank began to speak to him.  
“This is your room. You may go anywhere you like but keep your door locked whenever you are inside your room, and most importantly.... Do not leave your room after eight. No matter what you hear, under no circumstances are you allowed to leave at night.”  
Forcing himself to push back all the questions about that one strange rule, Thomas just nodded and slowly walked inside the room. Later that night, as Thomas was sleeping, he heard screams He glanced at the clock. 4:36 am, Thomas thought, It’s after the time he told me, I can’t leave. Thomas paced back and forth, he didn’t know what to do. The noises continued, screams traveled up the stairs. I have to go down there, Thomas thought. With this, he unlocked his door and creeped down the stairs. What he saw was mortifying. It was the Crank, but he looked worse. His wavy blonde hair stained with blood. His brown eyes surveyed the room, looking for something. Thomas was confused about what until The Crank picked up a chair and slammed it on the ground, smashing it to pieces. Thomas gasped, getting the Crank’s attention.  
“YOU!” The Crank said, his eyes widening. Thomas stood frozen with fear. Suddenly, a hand reached from behind him, pulling him backwards. It was a boy, about his age, with jet-black hair. Thomas was confused because he thought that he was the only human in the castle. He would have thought about it more if it weren’t for The Crank running at them at full speed.  
“Come on! Let’s move!” The boy had said to Thomas. Another boy behind him also ran with them up the large, spiral staircase.  
“Who are you guys?” Thomas asked while running.  
“The people who are about to save you, shank!” The boy said, quickening his pace. They all ran full-speed towards the room that Thomas should have stayed in. He wasn’t sure if they would make it in time. The door was just steps away, but The Crank was gaining on them. When Thomas got to the door, his eyes widened with fear.  
“It’s locked!” Thomas said, turning to the two who saved him.  
“Shuck it! Come on let’s go!” The boy with the black hair said, as he started to run further down the hall. The Crank, only a few steps away, was almost upon them. Suddenly, the Crank tripped on astray carpet, slamming into the ground, but also into the shorter boy’s foot.  
“ALBY!” The other boy had screamed.  
“Help me!” The boy, revealed as Alby, had screamed, struggling to stand.  
“Come on shuck-face, help me get him up!” The boy said to Thomas. The two got Alby up and continued to run, but not too long later so did the Crank.  
“YOU BLOODY SHANKS!” The Crank said. The three worked their way to the nearest door. Luckily, it was unlocked as Thomas easily pushed it open with one hand. He quickly closed it behind them and a second later the Crank started banging.  
“OPEN THE BLOODY DOOR!” The Crank said, his voice ringing in their ears.  
“I think we’re safe in here,” Thomas said, relief filling his body.  
“You idiot! We could have died!” The boy with the black hair snapped, looking quite angry.  
“But we didn’t,” Thomas replied nonchalantly, not seeing the problem. After all, he was just curious. How was he supposed to know what would happen anyway? The tall boy straightened, glaring at Thomas. But then he sighed, realizing that fighting wouldn’t help in this situation.  
“The name’s Minho,” The boy said.  
“I’m Thomas,” Thomas replied.  
“Yeah yeah, I know who you are,” Minho said as he glanced down at Alby, who was rubbing his foot. Thomas, not hearing Minho’s response, continued to question the boys.  
“Who are you guys anyway?” He asked.  
“You’ll find out soon enough,” Minho said, starting to survey the room they went inside. The room was pretty small compared to the rest of the mansion. It was an oddly placed storage closet with not much space to roam. Of course they’d pick the smallest room to seek refuge in. There were boxes all around, although it seemed pretty well kept. Thomas noticed Minho move towards a corner, which caught his attention.  
“What did you find?” Thomas asked,  
“Our way out, or well, possibly a way out” Minho mumbled as he crouched down. Thomas looked and saw a trap door, hidden behind boxes.  
“Do you know where it leads?” Thomas asked, raising an eyebrow and trying not to appear nervous.  
“Nope, but do you wanna find out?” Minho asked.  
“What choice do we have?” Thomas sighed.  
“I mean we could always wait until morning…” Minho replied.  
“Okay, so I guess i’m going first,” Thomas said, redirecting Minho’s comment. With that, Thomas opened the door and started to climb down the ladder.


	5. Minho fucks up.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Late Christmas special, enjoy!

Thomas slowly descended into the room, looking around hesitantly. They were in another room, yet this one was different from all the others. It was personalized. There was more style to this one than the other basic rooms that could suit anybody. Soon enough, Minho and Alby descended after him. Thomas just ignored them, too intrigued by some ripped portrait he saw from across the room. Pushing up one of the ripped corners to complete the portrait, Thomas stared at it. The drawing was of a man, but not any man. This one appeared to be of the Shank. He looked younger, happier, with messy blonde hair and soft brown eyes. Yet, this only made Thomas even more confused. What had happened to the Shank to make him so angry and isolated from everybody else? What was really happening here? What had he just witnessed? Why was the Shank, this apparently happy man, now trying to kill them? He sighed, forcing himself to move along and look around the room even more, in search of something else to catch his interest. Soon enough, his interest was caught again quite easily as he noticed a rose, floating up in the air with a glass jar around it as if holding it down or protecting it. The male walked towards it, staring at it in awe before tentatively reaching out to attempt to pull off the jar to touch the soft looking rose.   
“Hey! What the hell are you doing over there?!” Minho’s voice interrupted his thoughts, making him jump in surprise as he turned back to look at the other male.   
“Nothing, n-nothing.” He said nervously, backing away slowly from the rose, not wanting to anger Minho any more than he already had in the last few minutes. Although, Thomas was very curious as to it’s purpose. It’s probably a stupid reason anyway... Thomas thought to himself.  
“Come on, it’s just over here,” Minho said, motioning with his head towards a hallway. Minho let Alby lean on him as they walked, seeing that his foot was obviously bothering him. The dimly lit hallway led to another room, not as customized as the room before.  
“Where are we going?” Thomas couldn’t help but ask.  
“Why are you asking so many questions?” Minho said, obviously annoyed at this point. Thomas remained silent, knowing that it didn’t matter what he said next. In the next room there was a staircase leading to a closed door. Thomas just hoped that Minho knew how to get back from where they end up. They we're about to walk up the stairs when suddenly a blinding light pierced the room.   
“Are you guys okay?” Thomas asked worriedly, his eyes not yet adjusted. When he could finally see, he realized that they were no longer there. He was about to call out for them when he heard a voice.  
“Down here!” A familiar voice called.  
Minho?” Thomas replied, looking down to see a clock and a candlestick. Both of which had faces. “What the hell? What happened to you guys?”  
“Glad to see you too,” Minho replied, “This happens to us every morning, if you need to know.”  
“That’s...a bit...strange...” Thomas said, raising his eyebrows in confusion.  
“Yeah, well in any case, it’s safe to go up now, Newt should be resting by now,” Minho said, as he proceeded to jump up the stairs.  
“...Newt?” Thomas asked, questioning why Minho mentioned a lizard.  
“I-It’s no one, let’s just keep moving,” Alby chimed in, seeming rather quick to jump off of the subject as they made their way through the maze of a house.


	6. Feels get real.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Years! Posting early and a lot more than usual just to give us some more time to catch up, heh. Enjoy!

Chuck stumbled, breathing heavily while he dashed at full speed through the woods back home. He had to tell somebody! He wasn’t just about to leave his brother, the person who did everything for him, behind! Staring at the ground while he ran, he found himself running straight into somebody else.  
“D-Don’t hurt m- Chuck?!” Ben whimpered, his eyes widening in shock and utter surprise at the fact the small boy was alive, “Wh-Where’s Thomas?”  
“It’s all your fault! He had to trade places with me to let me go!” Chuck snapped, which seemed to surprise Ben as he flinched and took a small step back.  
“Wh-What?” Ben asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion as he looked down at Chuck.  
“You idiot! You left me behind and I got trapped in a castle with a maze inside! Thomas had to come find me!” Chuck practically screamed. Ben was about to reply but Gally and Teresa came up behind him.  
“Oh look, it’s a Greenie. What are you shanks yelling about?” Gally said, arms crossed in front of him.  
“I-It’s nothing,” Chuck said.  
“You think this is a joke huh? Well I’m gonna find out one way or another.” Gally said, pounding his fists.  
“HE WENT TO THE CASTLE!” Ben said whimpering in fear.  
“He did what?” Gally replied, a smile creeping across his face. Chuck gave Ben a glare that made him back up a bit.  
“The castle in the woods!” Ben mumbled, looking at his feet in shame mixed with guilt. “H-He’s there.”  
Gally’s smile widened as he pushed Ben aside, grabbing Teresa’s hand and pulling her along towards the woods. They had gotten all the information needed, and now Ben had been rendered useless. There was no need for him anymore. With that, Ben ran off towards the village.  
“W-Wait! Y-You can’t go!” Chuck finally yelled to Gally.  
“Watch me!” Gally said, as he continued to walk to the castle. Chuck went to say something, but he knew that nothing he did could stop Gally. So, Chuck decided to take a different approach. With this thought, he took off running to the right of where Gally and Teresa were headed. Maybe if I beat them to the castle, I could warn Thomas! Chuck thought. He didn’t know, however, what exactly he would do when he got there, or what he was supposed to be warning Thomas of, but he knew he had some time to figure the whole scenario out, seeing that the castle was about a twenty minute walk from the town. He ran into the woods, getting smacked in the face by nearby branches as he stumbled around blindly, trying as hard as he could to make it to Thomas before the other two. That thought was the only thought keeping him going. Thomas was the only person left in his life, and he needed to protect him with everything he had, just like Thomas would if it were him. Their parents had abandoned them as children, and ever since then Thomas had done everything for him. Now was his chance to repay the favor. After wandering around the woods for what seemed like hours, Chuck had finally made it to the castle, hopefully before Gally and Teresa. Chuck climbed up the familiar stairs to the grand entrance of the worn-down castle. He pushed open the giant, wooden doors which let out a low groan as he did so. Shivering slightly in fright, he tried to remember how Thomas would do this for him and was soon on his way again. He started down the corridors and hallways of the broken house, trying to retrace his steps from when he was there before. He turned the corner and--

__________________________________________________________________

“Remind me again, why were you so stupid to try that?” The woman said, tidying up the castle. The boy, now a teenager, was sitting on his bed, resting his head on his hands.  
“I-I don’t know. I couldn’t help myself!” The boy cried, his nimble fingers tugging at his blonde hair.  
“Well, that’s too bad, really. I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do to fix this mistake.” The woman said, almost appearing to be glad, rather than sad.  
“Don’t you mean YOUR mistake? Or what? Don’t you want to take PRIDE in YOUR work? I mean, LOOK WHAT YOU’VE DONE TO ME!” The boy said, tears flowing down his blood red cheeks. His face was all red and splotchy, with veins appearing here and there. Even the women could not have predicted this outcome. This wasn’t even her intention. All she meant was to make him ugly, emotionally driven by anger and have a negative attitude, which was the complete opposite from her first interaction with him. He was happy, intelligent, level-headed and always optimistic. Everyone wanted to be his friend.  
“Calm down, boy. I see my spell has taken a turn for the worse. If you keep it up, this will be the last time you see me. No more updates on the town, your family, Thomas…” The woman said, a smirk forming on her face, spreading from cheek to cheek.  
“DON’T YOU DARE BRING HIM UP! H-he was my best friend…” The boy exclaimed, “I-I’m sorry, I can’t control it. Please come back like you always do...” Even though he hated this woman for taking him away....and turning him into this monster, he needed company to survive, or he would actually become the monster he was forced to be.  
“W-Will I ever see Tommy again? Or my family?” Newt asked slowly after a few moments, his eyes overflowing with tears as they stayed trained on the ground sadly.  
“You mean your little boyfriend?” The woman asked softly, her voice low with a sing song tone to it.  
“Wh-What?” He asked softly, looking up slowly and moving his face out from his hands.  
“He loves you.” The woman exclaimed. The boy’s face was instantly as pale as snow, his eyes widening slowly. He knew that he loved Thomas, but Thomas loving him in return? That’s absurd!  
“You’re lying. Why would you lie to me like that?” The boy said, feeling his anger rise.  
“Why would I lie to you?” The woman said. The boy didn’t know how to react to this question. He felt as though he was on the brink of insanity. This lady has lied to him as long as he had known her, and now she was acting like he was the problem?  
“Oh, I’m sorry!” The boy said, as sarcastic as he could manage. “I should not have come to conclusions! Obviously you would never lie to me!”  
“I think our meeting is over now,” The woman said, gathering her stuff. The boy didn’t even want to stop her. “You know, I could just leave you here to fend for yourself!” The woman continued, “Good luck dying in the maze!” The boy thought about his options. Dying in the maze would probably be better than this, he thought, but i’d never be able to see Thomas again if I lose my mind and die here.  
“W-Wait…” The boy whispered out, his voice cracking slowly while his lower lip trembled furiously. He needed to stay sane, even if he was going to be trapped here forever. Somehow, someway, he needed to pass down his story and get it to Thomas. He needed Thomas to know he loved him too, even if he couldn’t tell him himself. If he was going to die here, trapped like some caged animal, he was going to at least do the thing he had longed and wished to do for so long.  
“Hmm?” The woman hummed under her breath, not even turning around but pausing in the doorstep, resting a hand on the door knob without turning it.  
“P-Please, can somebody stay with me? Even if I’m going to die here.... I can’t do it alone, I-I can’t be alone!” The boy exclaimed, tears slowly forming in his eyes as they glistened over with fear. He couldn’t be alone, not again. His heart started to beat in his ears, his vision slowly became blurred, and his head began to spin rapidly. This is how it felt to go insane, to lose his mind, to be alone once again. Flashbacks appeared in his eyes, a little boy running through the woods by himself, stumbling as snarling wolves could be heard behind him. His clothes were torn everywhere, blood from a large bite mark on his forearm dripping down his little pale hand. His head twisting, pounding, exploding with thoughts of how his short, cruel life was finally going to end. Tears froze to his cheeks, stinging them in the harsh wind while he frantically tried to escape, screaming loudly for his parents that didn’t even exist. Finally, he reached a large cliff, small pebbles slowly falling off of the little ground in front of him while he slowed to a stop. With a nervous glance back, pain filling his soft brown eyes, the little boy jumped before the wolves caught up to him. One of the wolves let out an annoyed howl as the boy's body rushed towards the ground below, turning around and running off with the rest of the pack close beside him.


	7. What's happening again?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> UHHHHHH. So. Being gone is a thing we've done. Really, really sorry for this long wait. Especially since it was left on a cliffhanger. We've been really busy. But since its summer, we're back. Lets get on with it.

“Hey, hey!”  
“Who is that? Has he woken up yet?”  
The boy blinked a few times, his blurred vision slowly adjusting to the surroundings as a face hovering over his own slowly came into focus. It was of another boy, with a small grin on his face, blue eyes staring down at him intently.  
“Hey, you alright?” He asked before leaning back, out of the boys face as to give him some more room to adjust.  
The boy coughed softly while he gave a very short lived attempt to sit up, crying out rather weakly in pain when an unpleasant jolt shot up his leg, which was sore and burning to the touch. Another boy behind the blue eyed one gasped softly, looking afraid of what he had witnessed. But the first boy only turned around and whispered something, shooing the smaller one away from the scene.  
“That was a pretty long fall, and it seems like your leg got most of it, huh?” The blue eyed boy whispered, as an attempt to make some sort of conversation. “I’ve never seen you around here before....”  
The boy frowned slowly as he sighed, shivering, looking down at his arm which had surprisingly stopped bleeding, but was still pricking painfully against the cold ground.  
“O-Oh right! I’m sorry! I didn’t realize-- You must be freezing!” The blue eyed boy whispered frantically, embarrassed as he quickly took off his coat and wrapped it around the boy’s bruised shoulders.  
The boy stared at the other for a moment before his hand slowly moved up to tug the jacket a bit closer to his chest and around his ripped up shirt more. Then, he attempted a small smile in thanks.  
“What's your name?” The blue eyed boy asked softly as he slowly stood up, offering the boy on the ground his hand. “My name is Thomas.”  
* * *  
The boy shook the memory away. I can’t think of Tommy now, He thought. He looked to see the woman gathering her belongings, getting ready to leave, it seemed.  
“Don’t leave! Please!” The boy told the woman. She paused and slowly turned around.  
“Oh, I’m not leaving yet. You want friends? Well, here you go! Ahahahaha!” The woman said, with a growing smirk. The room started to shake, the furniture scratching along the floors as it did. A strong wind circled the room, making it hard to see. The woman started to mumble things and before the boy knew it, there was a piercing bright light. In the blink of an eye, everything stopped. The boy was taken aback. What did she just do? The woman looked up, her smirk never left her face.  
“W-What just happened?” The boy asked. Before she could respond, the armoire started moving. So did the clock. The boy ran out of the room, scared to death. He ran into the dining room which was not too far away. I’ll be safe in here, He thought. He sat under the table and held his knees like a little boy. After he calmed down a bit, he stood back up. What he saw shocked and confused him. The candlestick was moving, the clock came down the stairs and had joined him. Was it a he or a her? The real question was: what was even happening? A tea set came to life as well. The boy started to question whether it was real, seeing that he had been going insane since he met the woman who did this. The candlestick moved toward the boy.  
“Hi,” It said, “My name is Minho, now will you please explain to me why I’m a candlestick?”


	8. What maze? What's a maze?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for updating super inconsistently, my partner and I haven't been very good about working out days to update! But I'm going to Europe this Friday, where I'll have barely any wifi but that means lots of time to update, right? I think we're almost a few chapters towards the end of this, so lets get on with it!

Thomas, Minho, and Alby made it back to the room. Since it was now day, “Newt” as he was called, should be normal.   
“So w-what do we do now?” Thomas asked, panicking at this point. What the hell was going on here?!  
“Well, WE are going to find the Crank while YOU stay here, like you should’ve last night,” Minho snapped back, glaring at Thomas slightly and obviously annoyed with him.  
“Why can’t I go with you guys?” Thomas replied with a whine.  
“It’s not safe, even in the morning, and you don’t know your way around the maze...” Minho responded, sighing softly.  
“W-Wait. A...maze?” Thomas questioned, raising his eyebrows in confusion. He knew that this place was huge, but Minho referring to it as a maze, well that was strange.  
“W-What maze? I didn’t say maze! I-I said, ‘You don’t know your way around this amazing castle!’” Minho responded with a nervous laugh as he sheepishly scratched the back of his neck.  
“Uh sure. So this house has a MAZE inside of it? I need to see it. Where is it?” Thomas asked curiously, a small smirk forming on his pale, scratched face.  
“I said there wasn’t a maze, slinthead! Now wait in your room, we will try to find the Crank so he can talk to you,” Minho responded, obviously annoyed with Thomas for being so pushy. Thomas frowned and pouted, heading inside the room. What’s the big deal about me going in a maze? Do they think I’m going to get lost? It’s probably really small anyways, I’d find my way out eventually! Thomas thought. As he was thinking, he heard the large doors from downstairs creek open.  
“...T-Thomas?” He heard faintly from downstairs. CHUCK! Thomas thought as ran out of his room and sprinted down the large staircase. When he got down the stairs, he saw that no one was there. Turning the corner slowly, Thomas peered around to try and find his brother. “C-Chuck?” He whispered softly with a small frown on his face. He saw a small figure at the end of the hallway. A smile formed on his face and he walked towards it, starting to jog to who he thought was his brother. “Chuck!” He cried, laughing softly in relief. His brother slowly turned around only to smile at him, waving and motioning him closer.  
“Thomas…” A low, raspy voice whispered out from behind Chuck. The Crank stepped forwards, eyes fixed on Thomas with a smile forming on his face. “Join us!” Chuck nodded and smiled at his brother, motioning him forwards once more.  
“Thomas! Thomas! It-It’s him! Don’t you remember?!”  
“Chuck…Walk over here. Now.”   
“Bu-But brother! I-It’s New-”  
“CHUCK GET OVER HERE RIGHT NOW! HE’S GOING TO HURT YOU!” Thomas shouted frantically, staring at his brother before his eyes turned cold and shifted up towards the Crank’s face. He was pale, small tears slowly forming in the corners of his soft brown eyes as his lips quivered. He was crying? But why? Maybe this was a trick? A hallucination. A dream. The Crank was trying to make him feel guilty, to lure him in using his brother. But Thomas wouldn’t let him.   
“Chuck, whatever he said to you is a lie. Get out of here right now. I set you free so I have to stay, but I need you to leave this instant.”  
His brother looked up at the Crank one last time, frowning softly before he started slowly walking away towards Thomas. Thomas grabbed him gently, walking him to the doors, opening them slowly as he leaned down to kiss his brother’s forehead.   
“Go home, okay? I-I’ll sneak out tomorrow night.” He whispered softly to Chuck. “I’ll see you tomorrow...yeah?”  
“O-Okay. Stay safe! Please!” Chuck responded.  
“Shouldn’t I be telling you that?” Thomas said with a smile. Chuck smiled back as he started towards the town. Thomas closed the door behind his brother and turned around to see the Crank, starting up the stairs.  
“Where do you think you’re going? What did you say to him?” Thomas asked the Crank. The Crank didn’t even turn around before responding.  
“...Y-You should be heading back to your room, it’s not safe down here,” The Crank responded.  
“Don’t pull that crap! Tell me what you told him!” Thomas exclaimed.  
“I-I didn’t tell him anything...” The Crank mumbled, still facing the stairs. He was about to walk up again but Thomas wasn’t going to let him go that easy.  
“I’m not done talking yet! Chuck...He was about to call you Newt, wasn’t he?” Thomas asked.  
“Y-You remember?!” The Crank asked as he turned around, his expression brightening while a smile started to form on his normally stone features.  
“Remember what?” Thomas responded, crossing his arms over his chest. He needed answers.  
“N-Nothing, now could you please get to your room?” The Crank said, obviously upset with what was happening. Thomas realized he wasn’t going to get much more out of him, but he still needed to clarify something.  
“So...your name really is Newt...right?” He said. The Crank paused.  
“...Y-Yes, Tommy. You of all people should know that...” The Crank said as he walked up the stairs.


	9. We've got a runner.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day? Yup. Again, sorry for all the inconsistency mess. Hopefully this will make up for it!

The boy looked up at Thomas, who was still holding out his hand. Grabbing it gently he responded to the comment.  
“M-My name’s Newt,” He said.  
“Nice to meet you Newt. Say, what are you doing in the woods?” Thomas asked kindly, raising an eyebrow. Newt didn’t want to even think about it.  
“I-I could say the same to you,” Newt said sadly, looking the boy in the eyes.  
“Heh, I like you. Well, I’m out looking for sticks for a fire...Want to help me?” Thomas asked with a goofy smile forming on his face. But then his eyes widened in realization, “OH! I almost forgot you just fell! I’m so sorry! C-Can you walk? Do you need help?” Newt shyly smiled in response. This kid asks a lot of questions. Newt thought.   
“I-I might be able to,” Newt said as he tried to stand. He tried to put the slightest bit of weight on his leg but instead he fell. Thomas helped him up to try again.   
“D-Don’t worry! I’ve got you. C-Come on! My house isn’t that far away, and we can stop if you get tired,” Thomas hummed taking Newt’s arm and putting it around his neck so he could lean on him. The two started toward the town, and Newt smiled because this seemed like the first time in his life where there was hope.   
* * *  
It took about fifteen minutes for the two children to make it to the village, not including one quick break.   
“We’re almost there, Newt! My house is right there!” Thomas said using his free arm to point to the smallest house on the edge of the town. Thomas opened the door with a soft creak and sat Newt down on a worn-down couch. “MOOOOOMMMM!” Thomas screamed.  
“Yes, Thomas?” A woman said gently as she walked in from the kitchen. She noticed Newt as soon as she entered. “W-Who’s this? Oh my, he looks hurt! What happened?” She said. Thomas explained how he had found Newt in the forest. “Thomas, go get me my Med Kit! Newt, is it? I hope you don’t mind me taking a look?” Thomas’ Mom said.  
“Go ahead,” Newt replied. Thomas came back with a box full of simple medical supplies. Thomas’ Mom started to tend to Newt’s leg as gently as she could.  
“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you end up falling down this hill anyway?” Thomas’ Mom asked as she continued to tend to Newt’s injured leg.   
“I-I didn’t see it when I was running,” Newt replied, not sure if he should tell the truth or not.  
“What were you running from, exactly?” Thomas’ Mom asked. Newt wasn’t sure how to respond but came to the conclusion that he could trust her.  
“...wolves...” Newt responded.   
“WOLVES? How did you outrun them? Where were your parents?!” Thomas’ Mom replied. Newt wanted to respond but instead he thought about what his parents had done to him. Tears rolled down his cheeks and he started to cry. “Oh! Oh, I-I’m sorry! I-” She tried to comfort him but crying from another room sounded. “I’ll be right back!” She said, running off to the other room. Newt was still crying as Thomas came closer.  
“A-Are you okay? I-I’m sorry about my mom she had to leave because my baby brother started crying, as you heard,” Thomas said. Newt stopped crying but tears still formed.   
“S-She asks a lot of questions like you,” Newt said as he sniffled.   
“Heh, yeah. It runs in the family, I guess,” Thomas said.  
“...Sorry about crying, I-I don’t really want to talk about my parents,” Newt said.  
“I-It’s okay. I-If it makes you feel any better my dad isn’t here because he’s really sick. He should be feeling better soon though!” Thomas responded.   
“I’m...sorry to hear that,” Newt replied.  
“I-If you don’t want to talk about why you were in the woods alone, with no parents, being chased by wolves...you don’t have to! But, man, you went through a lot!” Thomas said, awe-struck by how Newt even made it out alive.   
“W-When you put it like that I sound pretty cool, huh?” Newt said, smiling.  
“The coolest!” Thomas said, smiling in response. This made Newt realize that he could actually have a friend. Thomas’ Mom came back into the room.  
“I’m sorry about that!” She said, quietly. “Baby Chuck woke up so I had to soothe him back to sleep. But, enough of that, let’s get you all cleaned up! Do you have anywhere to sleep tonight? We’d be happy to have you!” Thomas’ Mom said.  
“N-No, I-I’d be happy to stay!” Newt said, starting to smile.  
“Yes! Mom, can he sleep in my room? Please?” Thomas asked.  
“If Newt is okay with it...and if we can find somewhere for him to rest his leg...” Thomas’ Mom replied.  
“He can sleep on my bed! I’ll sleep on the floor with blankets and pillows! It’ll be fun!” Thomas exclaimed.  
“Uh s-sure!” Newt said, happy that someone actually cared enough to do that for him.


	10. Newt gets roasted.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We're really, really close to the end of this ahh! My partner and I have already finished, so we should be posting a chapter a day now! Since this fic is sadly almost over, you guys can always feel free to submit an idea to our instagrams, @tomboy.tmr and @tmrpreciousnewt for a future fic! <3

It was 5:30 in the morning and Thomas couldn’t wait any longer to see his brother. Thomas kept pacing back and forth because he could no longer sleep. He had to get out of there, but he didn’t know how. He started with looking at his surroundings in the small room. A single barred window was all he really had to work with. Frustrated, he threw a chair at the tiny window, cracking the glass behind the bars. But it was no use, even if he could break the glass, he couldn’t fit through those bars. Shortly after he noticed something from where the chair was. Before he could investigate, Minho opened the door.  
“What are you doing, Shank?” Minho asked as soon as the door opened. There was a chair right next to the door which explained how Minho was even able to reach the doorknob in the first place.  
“Sorry I’m just...upset that I...am stuck in this room…” Thomas improvised quickly, mustering the most convincingly upset look he could.  
“Whatever you say, Shank. It won’t be much longer before the Crank would like to see you.” Minho said with the roll of his eyes as he walked back out the door. To save him some trouble, Thomas closed the door for him. He took a thick string from his curtain and tied the door to the dresser so it wouldn’t be easy to open and he started to investigate what was under the chair. It was a trapdoor! He had to move the table that the chair was next to in order to open it but, eventually, he got it open after a few minutes. The trapdoor creaked open and Thomas descended down the ladder and into the darkness, closing the door behind him.  
* * *  
“NEWT!” Minho screamed down the long hallways, “NEWT!” Newt peered around the corner.  
“What is it now, Minho?” The Crank asked, obviously fed up with Minho’s constant pestering, the almost ever-present scowl on his face.  
“I-It’s Thomas! He locked the door! I think he found the trapdoor!” Minho responded.  
“Ok I know where he’ll be,” Newt said as he started to run towards where the trapdoor would lead. Once he got to the basement, where all of the trapdoors lead, he waited until he heard footsteps getting closer. Thomas appeared from one of the ladder openings and Newt crossed his hands over his chest. “Where were you planning on going, Tommy?” Newt asked. Thomas turned around and sighed, biting his lip nervously. Damn, he had been caught. There was no way to cover this up now.  
“Well I guess nowhere now,” Thomas responded, a cold look forming in his eyes and a frown on his face.  
“Come on, Tommy, let’s get you back to your room,” Newt sighed, his heart twisting with pain while he turned around to go back upstairs. Thomas had tried to run away. Was he really that horrible?  
“Why do you keep calling me that!?” Thomas asked, obviously not planning on going anywhere. Newt turned back around to face Thomas.  
“Please, not right now,” Newt replied, doing his best to fight the tears which were threatening to form.  
“Then I’m not going anywhere,” Thomas stated firmly. Newt finally started to get angry.  
“Fine. You know what Thomas? If you want answers so badly...follow me,” Newt replied. Thomas seemed pleased with this declaration and followed Newt out of the basement.

__________________________________________________________________  
With a bright smile on his face, Newt followed his friend into the town, making sure to stay close to Thomas. Even though he had been there for over a year, it was still easy for him to get lost.  
“Tommy! Where do you wanna go first? The sweets shop?” He asked, British accent very obvious with his choice of words.  
Thomas turned to look at where he thought that Newt was, but noticed he was slightly limping behind, attempting to catch up without being seen.  
“I can walk slower for you if you want!” Thomas proclaimed.  
Newt just shook his head slowly and frowned, feeling guilty. “No it’s okay! I can always catch up!”  
“Are you sure?...Okay, Newt. Just tell me whenever you need help!” Thomas exclaimed and smiled at his friend, continuing to walk.  
The two boys only managed to get a few feet farther from where they had been speaking before Newt was hopelessly lost. His idea to ‘eventually catch up’ was worse than he had thought. Now he had no idea where his friend was, or who he could ask for help to find him! With a deep frown, Newt continued to search for his friend, yelling his name loudly before he stumbled into a tall, blonde woman.  
“I-I’m sorry, miss! Can y-you help me find my friend please?” Newt whimpered, hiccuping as he spoke, wiping his tears away with his shirt sleeve lightly.   
The woman looked down, first looking sympathetic before her expression changed and she smiled. Leaning down, she grabbed his shirt sleeve roughly, making Newt call out for help in fear. Tears streamed down the small boys pink cheeks as he squirmed in the woman’s iron grasp.   
“Finally, I’ve found you!”


	11. Do you remember?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh! One more chapter after this!

Thomas followed Newt, Minho, and Alby through the winding corridors of the castle. They ended up in a room that seemed familiar to Thomas. It was the room with the rose and ripped portrait that he had accidentally stumbled across a few days ago. The rose was still in the glass jar, only this time, there seemed to be a petal about to fall off.   
“What are we doing in here?” Thomas asked, obviously confused, staring at the rose curiously. What did the Crank have a rose for? Minho and Alby seemed to be even more confused, glancing at Newt then back towards the rose. Finally, Newt turned towards the three and sighed.  
“I wasn’t always like this,” Newt started, struggling to form the words, “I used to be normal, we ALL used to be normal. But I made an ignorant mistake when I was younger which sealed my fate.” Thomas couldn’t help but to interrupt.  
“What did you do?” Thomas asked. Newt smiled,   
“I’m getting to that part,” he said kindly, his smile disappearing as quickly as it had appeared, “My parents had left me behind in the woods, so my first instinct was to look for help. I came across this small cottage and knocked on the door. When no one answered, I knocked again and then saw it was unlocked so naturally I went inside, being the young, naive child that I was. The cottage consisted of one small room and inside the room there was a fire that was starting to burn out. I knew that I probably wouldn’t be welcome, so I knew I couldn’t stay for long. My plan was to get the fire going and then leave just so I could get warmed up a bit before searching more. But, when I went to put a fire starter in the fire, I tripped and dropped the entire bag into the fire, which caused it to burst into flames. I, of course panicked and turned to run away. But when I looked behind me I saw a woman screaming at me to come back. I ran as fast as I could and, eventually, I got away. Obviously then, I thought I was good until I heard growling. My run through the leaves caught the attention of a pack of wolves. I don’t know how, but I weaved my way through a thick patch of trees so I could outrun them. As I ran, I saw a huge cliff, but there was no way around it. I was trapped. So, I did the only thing I could. I-”  
“Jumped off the cliff and ended up hurting your leg, right?” Thomas interrupted once more, “But someone found you and took you in, even though your leg never healed.” Minho glanced over at Alby before giving him a certain look. This had to be the one to break the spell! Aside from the fact nobody else had shown up in ten years, Thomas somehow knew things about Newt’s past. There was no way in hell that this was some sort of coincidence.   
“Thomas...H-How do you-”  
Thomas lightly shook his head, frowning. He didn’t know where that sudden burst of energy had come from. How did he know all of this about Newt’s past when he could barely remember his own? Looking over at the rose, he raised an eyebrow curiously.   
“What is the rose for? You still haven’t explained if we can turn you back to normal yet, or what that rose has to do with any of this.” The brunette asked, staring at the Crank with a deep frown on his face, more confused than when he had arrived.   
Newt looked over at the rose sadly, staring at it as the petal that was dangling finally fell to the ground. He bit his lip anxiously, knowing that he only had about a month left. Only another month to have Thomas fall in love with him.   
“Th-the point is, story aside, I-I have to have somebody...you...fall in genuine love with me, before all the petals on the rose run out. Or else, I’ll be stuck as this forever...Well enough of that, let’s go get some bloody brunch!” With that, Newt turned and started walking towards the dining hall, leaving the other three in shock at what just happened. 

* * *

Thomas sat by himself in his room, staring at the floor in confusion. He really did want to help the Crank, since he had let Chuck go and all. But it was quite overwhelming to know that he was the only one that could break the spell and save everyone. Brunch had actually gone well, being that Thomas and the Crank started to bond for once. This made the pressure on him even worse, since now he had somewhat gotten to know the Crank. Talking to the Crank felt familiar, and Thomas swore he had heard that story somewhere before. Though he still couldn’t place his finger on the exact origin. All he could think about to keep him going at this point was his brother. Was all of this really worth it? He barely even knew the Crank! To hell if he sounded like an old friend! The Crank could be a raving lunatic for all he knew! Maybe he was even just as bad as Gally! Thomas couldn’t trust the Crank whatsoever. He didn’t know him well enough to believe anything that he had said! Chuck was his only family left! Why the hell was he even still considering helping the Crank?! He needed to get home and worry about Chuck, not some stranger he knew nothing about! So Thomas stood up, walking out of his room and towards the dining room, where the Crank was waiting.   
Minho glanced at Alby nervously. Did he really believe that Thomas would help them?! Minho was a pretty firm believer in having faith. But his was slimmed to none. No way would Thomas help turn them back to normal. Newt and Thomas had hit it off, sure, but Thomas was too headstrong about his sibling to be concerned for anybody else.  
When Thomas walked into the room, the tense silence had worsened as the Crank looked up nervously.   
“Tommy, will you help us?” The Crank asked worriedly, staring at Thomas with a small frown.   
“I’m sorry but this is too much for me. I have to go check on my brother. I can’t be concerned with your affairs any longer! So, no.” Thomas exclaimed, looking pretty guilty as he tried to muster up a confident expression.   
The Crank’s frown deepened and he just looked down at the floor sadly. ‘Please, Tommy, please.’ He thought to himself, wishing that he could just let his old friend remember him. But there was nothing he could do. Thomas made his decision. Anybody who knew Thomas knew that it wasn’t going to change.   
“Okay. Just let me give you something…. A parting gift of sorts.” Newt offered as he turned around to pick up a hand mirror, giving it to Tommy.   
“What is this for?” Thomas asked, staring at the mirror with a raised eyebrow. He didn’t need any gifts to make him feel even more guilty!   
“It’s an enchanted mirror. Even if you don’t want to ever come back. I’ll always be here for you… You can talk to me anytime, Tomm-Thomas.” Newt corrected himself, offering the mirror to Tommy.   
The least he could do was take it without a fight. So Thomas did just that, gently taking the mirror from Newt’s hand before he turned around and silently left. No goodbye. Nothing. Just like the last time Tommy had left Newt… 

* * *  
Thomas panted as he ran through the woods, looking around as he tried to frantically find his way back to his home. He kept running hard, only slowing down when he noticed a familiar tree. He used to come here all the time as a kid. With somebody else, but he couldn’t quite remember who that was. Probably just another neighbor kid. But this was his special tree. He felt compelled to sit down and just lounge around for awhile, but shook his head and began to run again. There was no time for that right now! He stumbled onto the street and out of the woods, running over to his house as fast as he could and threw open the door.   
“Chuck! Chuck?!” Thomas called, running all around the house in search of his younger brother. When he couldn’t find the smaller boy, he assumed he must have gone to town and turned on his heel, running the whole way there.   
Chuck was standing in the middle of the street, which normally Thomas would’ve scolded him for. But there was nobody else around. It looked as if the town had been completely deserted. So Thomas ran over to his younger brother to ask what happened, but first, he pulled Chuck into a hug.   
“Thomas! Thomas!” Chuck cried as he hugged his brother back, looking scared before glancing around the deserted town.   
“Where the shuck is everybody?! I’m glad you’re alright, but everybody else is gone!” Thomas exclaimed, letting go of Chuck and standing up straight to look at his brother clearly.   
Chuck smiled sheepishly, looking embarrassed which immediately made Thomas suspicious. Oh god, what had his younger brother done?   
“I might have accidently told Gally about the Crank...Which caused everyone to go to the castle besides the children...But it was only to protect you, Thomas! I had to get you back safely so I thought it was the best idea!”   
Thomas would’ve swore to himself if his little brother wasn’t standing right in front of him. How the hell was telling Gally about Newt a good idea?! Shuck, how was telling Gally about anything a good idea?!   
“Ah god! I have to go back and help! Stay right here okay, lock the doors to the house and don’t come out until I come back to come get you, okay?!” Thomas said frantically, making sure Chuck promised not to leave before he started heading back.  
Thomas ran as fast as he could back in the direction of the castle. He didn’t know what to expect when he got there, but whatever it was, he was sure he could handle it. Getting closer to the castle, he saw a crowd of people waiting outside the front door. ‘This can’t be good,’ Thomas thought. He headed toward the basement door, seeing that it was the next best way in, to avoid the crowd. The wooden door creaked even more than it did when he first arrived as he opened it. He weaved his way through corridors, just realizing that he seemed to get a feel for the place in his short-lived time there. As he came about the room with the rose in it, he saw that the rose was down to his last petal. Just as he was about to leave, he looked beyond the rose to find a photo he hadn’t seen before. The photo contained two young boys holding up books and smiling as they did so. Thomas recognized them immediately. One boy was Newt, and the other was himself. Thomas froze. Memories flooded back. The boy who fell down the hill, the boy who needed to be nursed back to health, the boy who became Thomas’ best friend...and the boy who became his first crush. Thomas remembered now. Everything. He understood why Newt called him Tommy, why it HAD to be him to break the spell, and why every time they had a conversation Newt would immediately follow with “Do you remember now, Tommy?” Thomas stood in shock, staring at the picture. He snapped back to reality. He now had to go save his best friend before it was too late. He ran out of the room and up the staircase faster than he ever had before. He didn’t have any other thought besides one: he HAD to go save Newt and break him from the spell.


	12. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wowwww. This has taken a long ass time (more than it should've to finish.) We should be writing something new pr soon, and next story I'll hopefully remember not to write the chapter notes in the summary box! But yeah, hope you guys all enjoyed! (Pardoning the like 6 month hitaus...) Hopefully we'll see you all on the next one!

Thomas ran out onto the balcony, looking around everywhere until he finally spotted Newt and Gally standing and talking at the end of the balcony. Oh god. This would not end well for anyone. Newt glared at Gally, but followed his gaze over to Thomas and his eyes softened.   
“Tommy!”  
“Get out of here shuck face! This is between both of us. Keep your own business to yourself, and if you value your life get out of here while you still can.” Gally snarled, looking back over towards Newt who had the angriest expression Thomas had ever seen on his usually kind, gentle face. Newt lunged at Gally’s throat, seeming prepared to kill if it came to that. Which, knowing Gally, unfortunately would.   
All Thomas could do was stand and stare, praying that Newt would make it out of there alive. But when he saw Gally pulling his hunting rifle from his side, he knew it was going to be a difficult task. Newt grabbed the rifle quickly, barely managing to tilt the barrel of the gun away from himself in time so that the bullet only grazed his skin. Ripping the rifle from Gally’s hands, he threw to the side.   
“Fine, fair game.” Gally mumbled, glaring at Newt before pulling out a knife from his side pocket.   
Newt was not as lucky as he was the first time. He tried to avoid Gally’s broad swings with the knife, but eventually got so close to the edge of the balcony he felt his feet slipping and Gally smirked. The knife stung his side, making him gasp in pain. Blood trickled from his lips and he stared at Thomas before he slipped and fell off the balcony.   
Thomas stared at the spot where Newt had been seconds ago, staring at the puddle of blood on the floor and the blood all over the white railing of the balcony. He noticed the fallen rifle only a foot away from him and quickly snatched it up, pointing it at Gally. Immediately, Gally raised his hands in surrender, dropping the knife to the floor.   
“Thomas, please man. Don’t shoot me. The whole town’s after him! He didn’t stand a chance anyways!” Gally pleaded as he stared at Thomas intently. Thomas had never experienced this kind of rage before. His whole heart had shattered within seconds. He had spent days neglecting Newt’s attempts to reunite them. But every time he had turned him away. Every time he had left Newt heartbroken and so alone. Now he understood how Newt had felt. To be alone all those years. To not have anyone remember. How was he going to carry this burden? Go back to the town and have nobody, NOBODY remember the man he loved?! The man he had put through constant pain all because he didn’t understand. The man who had dealt with so much pain, regret, and heartbreak for years because of him. Thomas loved Newt. Now, Newt was gone before he could finally confess. Newt was gone before he could know that Thomas had finally remembered. Newt was gone before Thomas could be with him. So Thomas pulled the trigger.   
The gun clicked. Gally’s panicked expression turned into a smile.   
“Safety's on.” He mumbled before jumping at Thomas and tearing the gun from his hands. Thomas fell to the floor, the rain pelting his face and making it hard to see. He coughed, temporarily breathless from his fall and looked up to see Gally, pointing the gun at his forehead.   
“You shoulda left while you could, shank.”  
Gally’s finger rested on the trigger, and he was about to pull it when he was suddenly thrown across the balcony. Groaning in pain, Gally looked up to see Newt, covered in blood and staring down at him with an expression of pure hatred. No way. No. He couldn’t possibly have survived that fall. Or maybe… He hadn’t fallen at all.   
“Sneaky...bastard…” Gally panted as he stared up at Newt, broken and battered on the floor of the balcony. Newt grabbed him by the shirt collar, his eyes slowly starting to show some sympathy.   
“Go. Don’t ever come back.” He whispered into Gally’s ear, shoving him down to the floor once again. Gally stumbled to his feet and started limping towards the way Thomas had come from.   
“Tommy! I’m so glad yo-” The sound of a gunshot rang out among the loud thunder. Newt stumbled backwards slightly, his smile fading blood started to cover his sleeve. His shoulder was on fire, and the stab wound to the side still hurt like hell. Newt collapsed onto the floor, holding his shoulder before he let go gently, hands going weak. Thomas turned around and threw a punch at Gally, the other boy falling to the floor. This time, he knew there was no other choice. Thomas grabbed his neck roughly, slamming him up against the railing around the balcony before finally finding the strength to throw him off. He didn’t even hesitate to turn around, running towards Newt and kneeling beside him. “No…” He whispered, staring at Newt’s bloodied body. His best friend was completely still, brown eyes glazed over and a small smile on his face.   
“NO! NEWT! PLEASE!” Thomas screamed, tears finally escaping from his eyes as he leaned down, resting his forehead on Newt’s chest which was still gushing blood. He gently took Newt’s hand in his own, holding it softly as Thomas sobbed onto his chest.   
“I love you…” He mumbled softly, tears rushing down his cheeks and Newt’s blood staining his face.   
The last petal hit the ground. Suddenly, a small patch of the sky cleared, the light shining through it aligning perfectly with Newt’s body. The veins cleared from his face, his hair became a soft blonde again, and Newt began to blink.   
“Tommy?” He mumbled, looking up slowly and then looking down at himself. The stab and gunshot wounds were gone. The veins left no trace of them ever having been on Newt’s skin. His expression was now soft, no more marks around his face, just smooth skin. Thomas stared at him for a few seconds, breathing very slowly before he finally leaned over and kissed Newt.

* * *

Thomas looked over at Newt with a smile, holding his dance partner close to him. In honor of everybody being returned back to normal, and everybody regaining their memories, a ball had been held in their honor! Newt looked up at Thomas and blushed, trying hard not to step on his boyfriend’s feet. He wasn’t the best at dancing, and dancing in front of practically the whole town didn’t help him feel at ease. Thomas was sweet though, he helped to guide his arms and feet around the dance floor smoothly. Then on rare occasions where Newt did mess up, Thomas helped him play it off and just improvised.   
Minho smiled as he watched the two of them, standing next to Alby.   
“I never thought Thomas would actually come back.” Minho said softly, staring at Thomas dancing with Newt. Honestly, well, he wasn’t complaining. He loved having his body back! Especially because he couldn’t melt anymore.   
Alby nodded in agreement, observing the two boys dancing gracefully around the room.   
“Would you like to dance?” Minho asked shyly, turning to Alby and offering his hand in response. Alby just chuckled but did take Minho’s hand, the two of them joining Newt and Thomas on the dance floor.   
Thomas smiled, he looked at his little brother watching them dance and waved to him, but soon moved his hands back to Newt’s waist.   
“I love you, Newt.”  
“I love you too, Tommy.”


End file.
